Your thoughts on micing amps in small to medium venues

George Kimery · From: Limestone, TN, USA

I don't want to repeat myself, so please go to Ray Montee's thread on amp placement and read my rather lengthy rambling (and off subject) about micing amps in small to medium venues. I would like to hear some opinions about the points that I raised and wondering how others feel about the subject and how you deal with it.

Billy Murdoch · From: Glasgow, Scotland, U.K.

George,
My thoughts, from My experience.
The only band I have ever been mic'ed is the five piece I am presently with.I did not like being in the Mix,I found that We were totally amateur in setting the sound,our drummer would walk out front and advise us to adjust the volume of each instrument.When it came time to play We all clattered and banged away and it must have been awful.We were advised by club members a few times to turn down and I suggested we tone it right down and play so that We could hear all the instruments ourselves on stage,We now do not mic up unless We are at a large venue such as a festival and there is a dedicated soundman.
best regards
Billy

Dave Grafe · From: Hudson River Valley NY

I did read your previous post, George, and have a few comments for you.

1) There is no "general rule" about pointing sound system mains "at the center of the back wall" and anybody who lives by that creedo has not clue one about propogation of sound waves or proper audience coverage. Thus it follows that there is no point to trying to point the stage amps in that direction. as a matter of fact, because of the extreme directivity of guitar amps, the few listeners who are on-axis will usually hear that amp much louder than the PA mains! It is more important not to point the amps directly at the sound mixer so that they do not hear a disproportionate level from it and thus leave it out of the mix.

2) Bleed from drums and amps on stage into vocal mics IS a big deal. Besides messing up the house sound it makes the monitors practically useless when the vocalists' mics are bringing all the noise they are trying to hear over back into their monitors to cover up their voices.

3) If the room is large enough to warrant mic'ing of the amps then the delay from multiple sources is a non-issue, as the frequency response of the amp off-axis is diminished enough that the mains will be reproducing sounds that cannot be heard at all from the majority of seats. Remember that a tiny minority of listeners are seated in the exact middle of the sound field, so pointing the amps of PA mains at the center serves nobody.

In a small enough venue the stage sound is all that is needed but when the room gets large or you go outside the sound is dissipated in a hurry and appropriate reinforcement is required if you desire clarity and articulate sound for all listeners.

A capable sound tech can make great things happen, most however are not educated or experienced enough to fully understand the problems at hand, never mind being able to do something intelligent to address them Smile

so just pick that thing with gusto and keep on grinning! Some days we can't do anything to fix it, but others we can't seem to do anything to screw it up so there you have it, IT'S REAL LIFE!

Chuck Hall · From: Warner Robins, Ga, USA

IMHO-----if you have a sound tech on the board at all times you might be ok in med venue. I would say no is a small venue.

Only problem with sound techs? We had one once that did not like steel (for example) and pulled it way down in the mix even though it was a very intricate part of our sound. Makes the output very bad..... Cool

_________________
Chuck
MCI D10 8/4 Nashville 400 and a Profex.

Ken Metcalf · From: San Antonio Texas USA

Most bands that mic every thing in clubs are too loud!!
Does this mean I have gotten old?
NO! .. Excess volume = loss of quality.
Maybe mic the kick drum if any thing.
_________________
MSA 12 String E9th/B6th Universal.
Little Walter PF-89.
Bunch of stomp boxes

Doug Earnest · From: Branson, MO USA

I like to have the instruments miked most of the time providing you have smart people to work with...it gives a lot of flexibility in making a nice sound for the audience. Even in small places it is good. The key is to just BARELY have the instruments in the mix for a nice fat sound. Just my opinion. It's also good to put the drummer in a large plywood crate Embarassed

Jerry Hayes · From: Virginia Beach, Va.

I work with three bands including the one my wife and I have (The Long & Short of It). In our band we mike my amp(s) no matter if it's a large or small venue. The reason being is constant sound all over the room. Think about it! If your amp is on one side of the stage near the rear and there are tables on both sides of the stage, the people on the other side aren't going to hear you as well as the drums, etc. will be between you and them and the folks on your side will hear you fine. I always set my amp mikes at exactly the same volume and EQ as what's coming out of my amplifier. That way I know exactly how loud it is and you can walk across the room in front of the bandstand and it's the same all over......JH in Va.
_________________
Don't matter who's in Austin (or anywhere else) Ralph Mooney is still the king!!!

George Kimery · From: Limestone, TN, USA

Thank everybody for your comments. I really appreciate you taking the time to do so. Every comment is food for thought, for sure. The main reason I always miced was pretty well the reason that Jerry mentioned, even sound through out the room, plus, not having to play so loud on stage to come up to the drummer's level (arent' they always too loud and everyvbody else has to come up to their level to get a good mix!) Jerry, you said you set your amp and the mains the same volume level. I am not quite sure how you do that without being in two places at the same time. You also said you EO'd the amp and the mains the same. I set the main's mixer's EQ on flat zero for this reason. A singer can't EQ their voice, so you do it with a mixer. You can EQ a steel with your amp. If you now put EQ on the main's mixer, haven't you just changed your sound so that the amp and main's are EQ'd differently? I want the mains to have the same sound as my amp, so it doesn't make sense to me to do any EQ'ing on the main;s mixer. Also, I don't run anything through the front, vocal monitors except vocals, in hopes that the singers can hear themselves better without any instrument sounds. I only run instruments through the back monitors for the band. With the same thinking, wouldn't it be better if only the vocals come through the mains for better clearity of the vocals to the audience?
Anyway, I am experimenting now. I have always miced instruments, but the last two gigs, I have not. I am going to hook up mic's tomorrow night and try it both ways. I sit right at the mixer and am in control, so I will see how it goes. I guess either way has it plus's and minus's. The jury is still out as far as I am concerned.

Forum Index > Electronics		Next oldest topic :: Next newest topic

All times are GMT - 8 Hours	Jump to: